​Dr. Gale R. Burstein
Commissioner of Health
Erie County Department of Health
95 Franklin Street
Buffalo, NY 14202
 
Dr. Burstein,
 
We are writing to express our profound concern with the decision by the ECDOH to recommend that the Depew Middle School shift to remote learning.
 
By using “recommendations” to school districts and not following the science regarding transmission in schools, the ECDOH school epidemiology team is effectively forcing schools to close arbitrarily rather than simply quarantining kids with COVID-19 and their close contacts. This represents a potential abuse of power and reflects what we believe to be a growing conflict of interest between the community and the ECDOH.
 
In a statement, the ECDOH noted that the “school epidemiology team has not found evidence of in-classroom transmission.” In other words, all of these cases were the result of transmission in the community outside of school. Furthermore, the ECDOH has provided very little evidence of transmission in Western New York schools when masks were used, which is consistent with the growing body of scientific research that definitively shows that schools are safe when masks are used properly.
 
Since the cases in Depew were not the result of in-school transmission, and because the data shows that the risk of transmission in schools is extremely low when masks are used, there is absolutely no scientific basis for the “recommendation” to go fully remote.
 
In fact, by forcing children back into the community, where masks are used less frequently and where adults are less likely to have been vaccinated than teachers, your “recommendation” actually increases the risk of transmission between kids and for the broader community.
 
And, by moving back to remote, you are doing more harm to those children in Depew that have been forced to learn via remote or hybrid instruction for over a year now, not that the ECDOH cares much about that health risk these days.
 
It seems clear that you have been advised by counsel to tell the public and the media that the ECDOH does not set school reopening guidelines, the State does, and that the only role that the ECDOH plays in the process is testing, tracing, and quarantining students and staff.
 
This is blatantly not true. Through its “recommendations,” the ECDOH has been permitted to create politically motivated policies outside of the normal political process, that do not comply with current NYSDOH guidelines, do not slow the spread of Covid-19, and have been proven to harm children.
 
As you know, it is extremely difficult for school districts to ignore the “recommendations” of the County Health Commissioner, even when those “recommendations” run counter to the science and the existing NYSDOH guidelines – as they do currently.
 
Your “recommendations” have put school boards in a very difficult position. They have to either ignore your “recommendations” or ignore the fact that the ECDOH “recommendations” have no scientific basis, contradict the NYSDOH guidance, and, worst of all, harm children.
 
The implied power of your “recommendations” represents a potential legal overreach that needs to be addressed immediately by the County and the State. What prevents the ECDOH from issuing baseless “recommendations” in the future on other health issues, which effectively take away the rights of one group of people and only serve political purposes? If this overreach is not addressed now, it may create a very dangerous precedent, particularly considering that you are not an elected official.
 
With these important considerations in mind, WNY Students First is pleading with County Executive Poloncarz and the Erie County Legislature to either limit the authority of the ECDOH or eliminate the school epidemiology team altogether on the grounds that it is not following the science, it is not providing transparency regarding in-school transmission, it is misleading the public with respect to the safety of our schools, it is abusing its powers by using “recommendations” as a means of setting policy, it is not following NYSDOH guidance, and it is harming children in Erie County.
 
In fact, we believe that the overzealous and potentially illegal actions of the ECDOH school epidemiology team may reflect a growing conflict of interest between residents and the County since transmission rates in schools are so low and the misallocation of funds within the ECDOH, by focusing so much on schools as opposed to more meaningful sources of transmission, is becoming more obvious.
 
The role of the ECDOH in the school reopening process should be limited to what you have stated publicly and to what you are legally entitled – to test, trace, and quarantine. Anything beyond that represents a potential abuse of power.
 
Please stop playing politics with the health of our children and please stop using the implicit power in your “recommendations” to deny children their right to an in-person education by preventing schools in Erie County from reopening safely and fully this spring.
 
WNY Students First
 
cc:            Mark C. Poloncarz
                  Erie County Superintendents
                  Erie County Legislature
                  New York State Association of Counties
                  New York State Association of County Health Officials

​

March 24, 2021

​Dr. Gale R. Burstein
Commissioner of Health
Erie County Department of Health
95 Franklin Street
Buffalo, NY 14202
 
Dr. Burstein,
 
WNY Students First strongly condemns your continued effort to mislead the public regarding the safety of schools, the severe health consequences of remote/hybrid instruction on children, and the role of the ECDOH in allowing schools in Erie County to reopen.
 
These efforts are anti-science, anti-children, and anti-education.
 
WNY Students First is demanding more honesty and transparency from you and Mr. Poloncarz on these critical issues.
 
Specifically, WNY Students First is asking you and Mr. Poloncarz to:
 

Provide Data Regarding In-School Transmission. The ECDOH has denied repeated requests to provide data on transmission rates in schools. Instead, you and Mr. Poloncarz continue to cite cases in schools, almost all of which were not transmitted in schools, and anecdotes in an attempt to defend your flawed approach toward schools and children. These efforts are intentionally misleading the public regarding the safety of schools and contradict the legitimate scientific reports from the CDC, the World Health Organization, the American Academy of Pediatrics, Harvard University, and the Journal of Clinical Infectious Diseases. Their research shows that the risk of transmission in schools is extremely, extremely low when masks are used properly at down to three feet of spacing. To suggest otherwise is misleading and detrimental. Of course, the risk of transmission in schools is not zero, but it isn’t far from it either. The point is not that there isn’t any risk (if that were the standard, we wouldn’t allow kids to ever attend school, get in a car, or do anything outdoors), it is that the health risks associated with closing schools are far greater than any perceived benefit of keeping schools closed. The science is clear at this point. Is it too much to ask our public health experts to follow that science, be transparent, and help educate the public regarding the safety of schools?
 

Address the Health Consequences of Remote/Hybrid Learning on Children. Pediatricians across the county are sounding the alarm on the devastating impact that remote learning is having on children. Doctors in Western New York recently published a statement in The Buffalo News citing the harmful effects that prolonged school closures are having on students. As the Health Commissioner, and as a pediatrician, it is unconscionable that you would continue to ignore this growing health crisis in our community, particularly since you have contributed to this problem.
 

Tell the Truth Regarding the County’s Role in Allowing Schools to Reopen. Beth Garvey, Senior Counsel and Senior Advisor to Governor Cuomo stated this week that “a local district could do less than six feet, provided that physical barriers are in place between students.” This is consistent with the current NYSDOH guidance which allows schools to reopen “at six feet of space in all directions between individuals or use of appropriate physical barriers between individuals.” It is this guidance that several counties in New York State have used to allow schools to reopen fully at less than six feet of social distancing between students with the use of masks and barriers. Either you and Mr. Poloncarz are lying to the public or Governor Cuomo is lying. Students and families, who have suffered needlessly from a lack of in-person education for over a year now, deserve an honest answer to this question. Our government officials need to be held accountable for this decision.
 
It isn’t too late to help. Every day matters for our kids.
 
Please choose science over fear, transparency over misinformation, and the health of our children over politics.
 
WNY Students First
 
cc:             Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of New York State
                  Erie County Superintendents
                  Erie County Legislature
                  Howard A. Zucker, Commissioner of Health for New York State
                  Mark C. Poloncarz, Erie County Executive
                  New York Association of Counties
                  New York State Association of County Health Officials
 

WNY Students First believes that the updated guidance regarding social distancing in schools from the CDC is a step in the right direction. The new guidance reflects the importance of in-person instruction for the education and health of children as well as the latest scientific research which shows that there is very little transmission in schools when masks are used and students are separated by three feet.
 
However, the CDC guidance is only relevant to the extent that the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) updates its guidance to allow schools to reopen with three feet of social distancing, and county public health departments and school boards follow any new State guidelines to open schools fully. Indeed, more work is needed to help open schools this spring and return children back to the safest environment possible – the classroom.
 
Below is a summary of the actions that WNY Students First would like to see taken over the next few days in order to help schools reopen fully and safely in the coming weeks.
 
New York State Department of Health

• Given the updated guidance from the CDC, the increased scientific evidence which shows that transmission rates in schools are extremely low when masks are used, the prioritization of teacher vaccinations, and the severe impact that remote/hybrid learning is having on the health of children, we demand that the NYSDOH immediately update its school reopening guidance to allow ALL schools in ALL counties in New York State to reopen fully this spring at three feet of social distancing with the use of masks.
• Any delay in updating the school reopening guidelines will just cause students in New York State more harm. There is absolutely no reason why kids should not be back in school completely this spring given what we now know about the science, the damage that is being done to many children, and the vaccination of staff members.
• It is important that the NYSDOH issue the guidance in a way that does not create confusion, as it did last summer. After initially allowing schools to reopen at either six feet of social distancing OR the use of masks, the NYSDOH inexplicably updated its guidance in a way that gave too much discretion to county officials and unnecessarily prevented many schools across New York State from reopening fully. This cannot happen again.
• This time around, we ask the NYSDOH to choose science over fear, and the health of children over politics. Please send a clear mandate to county officials and school boards that ALL schools should reopen fully this spring with the proper protocols, including three feet of distancing between students and six feet of social distancing between staff members. This does not need to be complicated.

 
County Executives & Health Commissioners

• In the face of mounting scientific evidence regarding the safety of schools and the damage that remote instruction is having on the health and well-being of children, our county leaders have chosen to ignore the NYSDOH guidelines which clearly have allowed schools in Erie and Niagara Counties to reopen fully since September with the use of masks and barriers.
• Contrary to their public statements, our county officials are not following NYSDOH guidance. Dr. Burstein and Mr. Stapleton have had the ability, and legal obligation, to follow NYSDOH guidelines completely, and not selectively, by allowing schools to reopen at less than six feet of distancing between students with the use of masks and barriers. Our county officials need to be held accountable for not following NYSDOH guidance to the letter of the law and arbitrarily and unnecessarily harming children in Western New York by preventing schools from reopening fully with the use of masks and barriers.
• Officials in several counties in New York State have allowed schools to reopen fully with the use of masks and barriers, consistent with current NYSDOH guidance. Students in Western New York are being treated unfairly by our county officials.
• Our understanding is that many superintendents in Western New York have asked county public health officials for clarification regarding the potential use of barriers given the NYSDOH guidance which clearly allows schools to use three feet of social distancing if masks and barriers are used. Dr. Burstein and Mr. Stapleton have chosen to ignore this important provision and, in so doing, have created their own de facto guidance which now stands in contrast to the current NYSDOH and CDC guidelines.
• Given the new guidance from the CDC, along with the existing guidelines from the NYSDOH, we demand that our county officials update their school guidance immediately to allow ALL schools to reopen fully this spring with the use of masks and barriers. Students and families should not be forced to wait for updated guidance from the NYSDOH when the existing guidelines allow schools to be reopened fully today with the use of masks and barriers.
• When the NYSDOH does update its guidance, WNY Students First expects our public health experts to follow it this time. We cannot allow our county officials to continue to place petty, local political agendas over science and the health of our children.

 
School Boards & Superintendents

• WNY Students First demands that school boards and superintendents do the work necessary to fully and safely reopen schools this spring once the NYSDOH guidance is updated or the county officials revise their flawed “interpretation” of existing State guidelines. Kids have waited long enough.
• School boards, including Buffalo Public Schools, have a legal obligation to provide all children with an equitable, in-person education and they cannot be allowed to overrule the guidance provided by our public health experts once it is changed. There is absolutely no scientific basis to deny students their right to an education by arbitrarily requiring more than three feet of distancing between kids when the guidance is updated. Science no longer supports this position, and it never did.
• Delaying full in-person instruction until the fall is both immoral and potentially illegal. School boards should follow the advice of the health experts and create a plan that allows students to return to school while adhering to the State guidelines.
• School districts should be reviewing design plans immediately to reflect the new guidance, begin the process of communicating with all stakeholders, including families, and prepare for the return to full in-person instruction this spring.

 
WNY Students First is calling on our leaders at all levels, State, County, and local, to follow the science and work together to fully and safely reopen schools as soon as possible this spring.
 
WNY Students First

On March 15, Dr. Gale Burstein wrote a letter to WNY Students First on behalf of Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz and the Erie County Department of Health. Please click HERE to read this letter. Below is our response.



Dr. Gale R. Burstein
Commissioner of Health
Erie County Department of Health
95 Franklin Street
Buffalo, NY 14202
 
Dr. Burstein,
 
Thank you for your response dated March 15, 2021. In the interest of promoting more transparency on the issue of school reopenings, we are attaching your letter to WNY Students First to this press release to make sure that the residents of Erie County have access to the information in it.
 
While we are pleased that you have finally responded to the members in our group, we are extremely disappointed that you have chosen to largely ignore the mental health issues facing many children and that you continue to mislead the public about the safety of schools and the role of the ECDOH in setting school reopening guidelines.
 
We expect more from our public health experts.
 
WNY Students First would like to make the following points in response to your letter:

• While some ECDOH efforts have been successful in reducing transmission of Covid-19, the ECDOH guidelines on school reopenings are causing more harm than good.
• Transmission rates in schools are extremely low and more than 99% of all community transmission has occurred outside of schools. Closing schools takes kids out of the safest possible environment for them and increases the odds that they do contract and then spread Covid-19.
• In setting its school reopening guidelines, the ECDOH is not taking into consideration the devastating impact that remote/hybrid learning is having on the mental health of children, despite warnings from pediatricians, parents, teachers, and students.
• The ECDOH is not providing transparency on transmission rates in schools. Instead, it is equating cases in schools with transmission in schools, thereby creating more fear and confusion. In addition, the ECDOH is not providing transparency into how it is monitoring the health consequences of prolonged school closures on children.
• The ECDOH school reopening guidance runs counter to the NYSDOH guidelines, which allow schools to reopen fully at less than six feet of distancing between students if masks and barriers are used. Schools districts in Erie County are operating under more restrictive guidelines than schools in other counties in New York State, which is unfairly impacting students in Erie County.
• By not allowing schools to reopen at less than six feet of social distancing with the use of masks and barriers, the ECDOH is preventing school districts from providing the essential service of education. The ECDOH is denying our youngest citizens this fundamental human right.
• The ECDOH is not fulfilling its mission to protect the health and well-being of its residents. The ECDOH guidelines are arbitrarily preventing schools from reopening, run counter to the latest scientific research regarding in-school transmission, contradict the NYSDOH guidance, and are negatively impacting the health of our children – all while doing very little to reduce community transmission of Covid-19.

 
WNY Students First will continue to advocate for students on this issue, and we hope that you and your staff will finally engage directly with all stakeholders, including families, to help return our children to the safest place possible – the classroom.
 
WNY Students First
 
cc:            Mark C. Poloncarz
                  Erie County Superintendents
                  Erie County Legislature

From a member of WNY Students First:

This morning, I called the Onondaga County Executive's Office and spoke with an official about their decision to allow school districts to open fully at 3 feet of distance with masks and barriers. 

They confirmed that Dr. Gupta took into consideration state guidelines, along with the health of children and science related to safe school openings. They stated that they are fully compliant with state guidelines and are doing what makes sense.

I then called the reporter from WBEN who reported HERE regarding Mr. Poloncarz' statements on Erie County Department of Health's decision to not take the same path as Onondaga County. 

In the reporter's article, Mr. Poloncarz states: "I know from talking with colleagues of mine in county and state government that while Onondaga county issued this 3ft advisory, they actually don't have the power to do that."

Actually, Onondaga County DOES have "the power to do that" - and so does Erie County. I examined the NY state guidance that ECDOH sent me directly:

https://www.governor.ny.gov/sites/governor.ny.gov/files/atoms/files/Pre-K_to_Grade_12_Schools_MasterGuidance.pdf

Please see Page 2 under social distancing: "six feet of space in all directions between individuals OR use of appropriate physical barriers."

This is the language that Onondaga County is using to reopen at 3 feet with the use of barriers and masks. Please keep in mind that they are also keeping 6 feet of distance between students and staff and between all staff members. 

Mr. Poloncarz and Dr. Burstein DO have the authority to follow the same guidelines to allow schools to reopen fully and safely today, with the use of masks and barriers, just like officials in Onondaga County did last week.

It has become increasingly evident that Mr. Poloncarz and the Erie County Department of Health are not being honest about being able to follow Onondaga County's lead.

​Dr. Gale R. Burstein
Commissioner of Health
Erie County Department of Health
95 Franklin Street
Buffalo, NY 14202
 
Dr. Burstein,
 
We are writing to help set the record straight regarding a few misleading comments made by you and Mr. Poloncarz during your March 9 update.
 
First, the school reopening guidelines from the Erie County Department of Health (ECDOH), which have not been updated to incorporate the latest scientific research on in-school transmission or the reduced risk related to teacher vaccinations, are not in-line with the guidance from the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH). To suggest otherwise is extremely misleading.
 
As you are aware, the NYSDOH guidance clearly calls for social distancing of “six feet in all directions between individuals OR use of appropriate physical barriers between individuals.” By not recommending that schools use barriers and masks when distancing of six feet is not possible, the guidelines from the ECDOH are far more restrictive than the NYSDOH guidance released last summer.
 
Last week, officials in Onondaga County moved to allow schools to reopen fully at less than six feet spacing between students with the use of masks and barriers, consistent with the NYSDOH guidelines. They even went so far as to purchase the barriers so that schools there could reopen fully as soon as possible.
 
Instead of working to help schools reopen fully and safely, as officials in Onondaga County did last week, our County leaders have chosen to mislead the public.
 
In another example of misleading the residents of Erie County, Mr. Poloncarz, in attempting to address the risks related to in-school transmission, commented that there have been “a high number of cases that are spreading through in-person instruction.” This is also false.  To equate cases in schools with transmission in schools is extremely misleading.
 
Most studies show that in-school transmission is extremely low and virtually non-existent when masks are used properly. Even the ECDOH has suggested that most of the transmission that has occurred in schools has been due to staff members not following the health guidelines. In short, the masks have worked.
 
Of course, parents, caregivers, teachers, and school boards would know more about in-school transmission in our region if the ECDOH would provide the data but the County has ignored our requests for more transparency. Sadly, our County officials have chosen fear over science, and obfuscation over transparency.
 
And then there is misleading by omission. The ECDOH continues to ignore the serious health issues that children are facing as a result of the prolonged school closures. No data seems to mean no problem in the political world.
 
But, pediatricians, parents, and students are trying to tell you that there is a growing health crisis among our youngest citizens that demands the attention of our public health officials. Doctors in Western New York recently sent a letter to the State outlining the serious health concerns related to remote/hybrid learning and recommending the full reopening of schools by relaxing the six feet distancing guideline.
 
Instead of leading on this critical issue, the ECDOH has decided to point fingers at State officials, hype the risks of in-school transmission (without providing data), and ignore the mental health problems of children.
 
This is no longer just a matter of not following the science. Our public health experts are now actively engaging in a campaign to misinform the public in a misguided effort to defend a policy which no longer makes sense scientifically and is unnecessarily harming children.
 
Enough is enough.
 
We ask you and County Executive Poloncarz to stop misleading the public, be more transparent, follow the science, and help our children.
 
WNY Students First
 
cc:            Mark C. Poloncarz
                  Erie County Superintendents
                  Erie County Legislature

 WNY STUDENTS FIRST MARKS ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF SCHOOL CLOSURES 
WITH NEW AWARENESS CAMPAIGN
 
WNY Students First announces a new awareness campaign to mark the one-year anniversary that schools in the region closed their doors to full-time, in-person instruction.
 
As part of that campaign, the group will call attention to the need for open schools on a billboard along the 33. Beginning on Monday, March 8th, and running for one month, the billboard will rotate three messages that highlight the safety of schools and the urgency of returning children to classrooms as soon as possible.
 
Parent Advocate, Dana Hensley, says “Every day that our kids are out of school is one day too many. After one year, it’s time to follow science - not politics - and return teachers and students safely to classrooms. It can be done.”
 
In addition, WNY Students First will produce a powerful zoom event entitled "One Year Later: I Am" to mark this year of loss for our children. The event will take place on Sunday, March 14th, at 6pm EST., and feature speakers including Vonetta T. Rhodes, Buffalo poet and educator, Melanie Gabriel, 8th grader, activist, and founder of the Open Schools USA group, Samuel L. Radford III, Buffalo public school activist and community leader, and Eleni Filippatos, public school teacher and founder of the group, Teachers for Open Schools. Please contact wnystudentsfirst@gmail.com for the zoom link.
 
ABOUT: WNY Students First is a non-partisan group of parents, caregivers, teachers, and school district stakeholders across Western New York working toward the common goal of giving students and families an organized and active voice regarding the education of students within their districts. 
 
Press Contact: 
Tarja Parssinen, Parent Advocate
WNY Students First
#FullyOpenNewYorkSchoolsNow petition
Email: tarjaparssinen@gmail.com